Whew – it’s been a few days since I gave you a good update! These past few days have been largely uneventful in terms of major issues. Let’s keep it that way! Leah has had a lot of visitors “this September” (also known as the past three days). Last week she had special visits from her Grandpa Bill, her Aunti Staci and friend Kimmy, and her Gran. On Sunday, she had a visit from her friend Sharon from Mandy’s choir. Later in the day, cousins Kim and Jenna came over (after going on a wild goose chase for cornstarch for us – thank you!!!!!), and Jenna held a baby for the first time ever! Jenna even got to help give Leah a bath, comb her hair, and pick out an outfit. I’m sure Leah and Jenna will still be hearing about the visit years from now.

Yesterday, SweetBug’s alter-ego emerged after an extended absence – you can call her Ms. CrankyPants. I really can’t blame her, though. At 6AM the mean vampire nurses came in to steal her blood. (Okay, they really were not mean at all, but if you were 4 months old I’m sure you would think the same of anybody who came at you with a needle and a bunch of vials. Or maybe you still feel that way.). A little later in the morning, the surgical residents came to put silver nitrate on the new granulation tissue around the Mini button. Then, the occupational therapist came in to make Leah WORK! She had to hold her head up, grip stuff, pretend to stand up, move her neck from side to side, watch stuff with her eyes… it was exhausting. You don’t even know. So by the time our friends Marie and Donald came to meet Leah, she was suuuuuper cranky. We had all these awesome intentions of putting the kid in her hand-crocheted Minnie Mouse outfit (courtesy of another of Mandy’s choir friends), but she was not having it. Alas.

Later in the day, Grandpa Bill and Grandma Barbie came for a nice visit. Grandma and Grandpa snuggled with BabyBug while the Mamarazzi hovered and took video and pictures and Grandma Barbie tried to swat her away. It didn’t work. You can’t stop the Mamarazzi! Muahahahahaha!

It wasn’t until after my parents left that we were finally able to get the little diva into her Minnie outfit. At that point it was a matter of principle. Plus we wanted pictures. 🙂 We took pity on Leah and changed her outfit once we were done with our little photoshoot. She went from Minnie Mouse to Lady BabyBug – complete with antennae-bearing hat. We took the ladybug hat off after the second round of pictures, ’cause we’re nice like that. Baby finally knocked out in the early evening. This morning my friend and old law school classmate Beth came to visit, and pretty soon we are going to have a Very Special Visit from cousins Beth and Brian and Erin, who we haven’t seen in weeeeeeeks ’cause they were out of town. Leah misses them so, and is especially excited to see Cousin Erin and find out if she met Minnie Mouse on the Disney cruise.

The Big Deal of this week will be the meeting we have with the surgeons on Friday to discuss next steps for Leah. If you were wondering why we needed cornstarch: the doctors are having the nurses treat the Mini button site with 1:1 portions of Nystatin powder and cornstarch to keep it clean and dry, and Leah is still on oral antibiotics. They are applying silver nitrate about every other day or so. I worry about how Leah will do with major surgery when she has responded so poorly to the g-tube insertions, but I guess that’s part of why they want her to get bigger before doing a repair.

And now, you shall have pictures.

Showing off our pretty orange dress. Orange is our color. Also pink and blue and green and yellow and purple.

PolkaBaby pokes her tongue out.

Bored Polkababy is bored.

Polkababy says, “Get away from me with that suction tube!” (Or some other equally-irritating baby torture device)

Leah loves her Grandpa Bill

Three generations of pun-tastic dorks. Well, two really, but I’m going to take a leap and say Leah will take after her Mama and Grandpa in this respect.

Caption me, please!

Snuggling with Grandpa Bill. Sooner or later she will realize how much fun it is to pull that beard.

Grandpa Bill, upside down.

Our little monkey in monkeys

Did Grandpa just tell some sort of silly joke?

Mamasmiles and Babysmiles

“Hi Gran!”

Nomming on Gran’s shoulder

Sleepypie

“Oh hey guys! OMG, isn’t this dress like, totally adorable? OMG!”

Dainty little fashionista is ready for her closeup

“Bored now.”

Sweet sleepy bug gets Mommysmooches

LOOK AT THOSE FEET! BabyBug says, “Thanks for giving me your old jammies, Ruby! They are so comfy and FEEEEEET!”

High five!

Bitty bitty hand!

Mommy and BabyBug. One of Mandy’s former students bought Leah this little ladybug set (it came with a couple of other items as well). It’s too cute!!! We love it!

Showing off LadyBabyBuggie

Caption me. Please let it involve the Baby Mafia.

“Oh Mama. You had WHAT for dinner?” Oh Buggy. Probably a jar of baby food.

“What do you MEAN, I’ll have to eat that stuff someday?”

“Actually, it would be kind of cool to eat something.”

SleepyBug with her smiling daisies

Toesies

Sharon and her awesome shirt. Leah seems to like it!

“Really, you don’t say?”

Cousin Jenna holds her first baby. I love the little look on Leah’s face in the middle picture. She is such a dolly!

SmilyBug and Jenna

Bath time!

Baby gets her hair did

“Monkeys! An excellent choice, cousin Jenna!”

Kim taking a picture of me taking a video of Kim

Jenna and Kim

Grandpa and Lisa

“Minnie: The Sneak Preview,” starring Ms. CrankyPants

“Sigh. I give up.”

Kissyface

Mama and MinnieBug

Mama and Sleeping MinnieBug

MinnieBug

“Hey, who you callin’ Goofy?”

More MinnieBug

Portrait of a silly family

“OMG. Please tell me this isn’t going on the Internet.”

 

“OMG. First Minnie, now this.”

Lady BabyBug

“I’m the king of the world!”